2007 2.5 si Lifter tick

Mark R

Member
 Bath
Hi guys and gals, new to Z4 ownership and i know this has been covered loads and loads of times but would you mind a couple of questions please. As in the subject title my new (to me) 2007 2.5 si SE has developed a lifter noise after 2 weeks of ownership, goes away after 2 mins of the normal bleed procedure, Mrs R uses the car for short journeys to work, yeah I know.... So to get to it I was going to do the normal flush, oil change and possibly lifter treatment but would really appreciate your wisdom on the following points.
Engine flush Yes or No, if yes which is best have used Forte in the past ?
Correct oil for this vehicle ? then have seen suggested a different weight change could help however some say up some say down in weight I can see the merits of both arguments, any suggestions or any success either way ?
Lifter treatment Yes or No, if yes which one ?
I guess BMW would not want to know this issue now on a car that is over 10 years old.
Of course I accept the advice just for what it is and of course I know its my call.

Many thanks and great Forum by the way.

Mark R
 
Hi, out of all the things you suggest I’d say a long journey at weekends using a fair proportion of the rev range where possible would be the most beneficial, along with more regular oil changes than stated by bmw :thumbsup:
Ps, your right-they won’t want to know after 10years plus!
Rob
 
I have a 2.5si and use Castrol edge titanium 0w-30 - that’s what it had out of the factory.

Re ticking - give it an italian tune up every now and then and it should stay away.
 
I believe if your engine suffers with it, little you can do other than different weight of oil or replacing parts for modified ones.

https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=10937
 
Bmw's own procedure to deal with it is in the first instance to run the engine at certain rpms for a period of time and give it back, if that doesn't fix it new lifters are the next stage, followed ultimately by a modified head.. £££££

Mike
 
Hi Guys, thanks for the help, so its gonna be an Italian tune up (honest dear the guys said I have too) then as its due for an oil change might give the Castrol Edge 0W40 a go. Understand about replacing the hydraulic lifters and head replacement lets hope it doesn't get that far.

Thanks
 
Hello all,

Rather than start a new thread on this, I thought I should just resurrect this old one. I started up my 3.0 for the first time in a while today and the lifter tick was very prominent. It took a good 10 mins to go away (probably because it was so damn cold here).

My question is, other than the irritating noise, is lifter tick causing any long term damage? Is it harming the engine in any way. I don't use my car much, and I understand this is what you should expect. I'm just worried there may be some harm caused.
 
check your oil levels as there's a high chance it could be indicating a lack of. Mine went away after an oil top-up and some spirited driving
 
Zedtastic said:
Hello all,

Rather than start a new thread on this, I thought I should just resurrect this old one. I started up my 3.0 for the first time in a while today and the lifter tick was very prominent. It took a good 10 mins to go away (probably because it was so damn cold here).

My question is, other than the irritating noise, is lifter tick causing any long term damage? Is it harming the engine in any way. I don't use my car much, and I understand this is what you should expect. I'm just worried there may be some harm caused.

Hi, I’ve never heard of any damage caused by it-just annoyance of the sound :(
Rob
 
Smartbear said:
Zedtastic said:
Hello all,

Rather than start a new thread on this, I thought I should just resurrect this old one. I started up my 3.0 for the first time in a while today and the lifter tick was very prominent. It took a good 10 mins to go away (probably because it was so damn cold here).

My question is, other than the irritating noise, is lifter tick causing any long term damage? Is it harming the engine in any way. I don't use my car much, and I understand this is what you should expect. I'm just worried there may be some harm caused.

Hi, I’ve never heard of any damage caused by it-just annoyance of the sound :(
Rob
my 85 used to do it sometimes.
but after an oil change and Italian tune up was fine.
also cut back on short trips which helped.
 
As Rob's reply above, history has shown that whilst the ticking noise is annoying it does not seem to result in any danger of mechanical failure in the N52 engine.

I bought a high miler 130i back in 2009 and didn't keep it for long, partly due to a fear that the noise would lead to bigger problems. However 9 years later there aren't any horror stories that I am aware of, where engines have lunched themselves due to the issue and it seems quite binary in that the ticking either happens or it doesn't; If the engine ticks then it continues to do it but doesn't get 'worse' over time. That 130i is still on the road (according to MOT check) with another 50k on the clock, and since then I've owned a 330i and the Z4C with the same engine and both make the noise under certain circumstances, typically after a number of short start-stops where the engine doesn't warm up.

Chris
 
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